Chapter 105 The menacing Rotherham

Bournemouth's first game after the New Year still maintained a fiery competitive state.

The players' tacit understanding and ability to read the game no longer require the head coach to remind them on the sidelines all the time.

The goal just scored was due to the players' understanding of the field space and timing during the game.

After all, the coach's tactical arrangements are just a strategy in the general direction.

Although there are some details, the 22 players on the field are playing football, and they must make adjustments based on their judgment of offensive tendencies in a fast-paced game.

Since the opponent wants to use the running of the midfielder to fill the space on the wings.

Then mobilize them to defend, let them run, and consume their energy.

Then hit the ball to the weak side to establish an offensive advantage.

At the 35th minute, Rossi retreated to the midfield to form a five-man midfield, which increased the defensive pressure on Rotherham.

Rich's transfer ball was accurately passed to Ryan Fraser on the wing.

But this time, Rotherham's attacking midfielder Pringle was already defensively in place.

At this time, Rotherham formed a 4-4-2 formation, which protected the wings well.

Ryan Fraser saw the opponent's tight defense and returned the ball to the defensive midfielder.

Pringle immediately pressed in the direction of the ball, pressuring the ball carrier and forcing him to move the ball to the right.

Here, Rotherham has formed a three-man strong side defense, which is evenly matched in terms of numbers, completely restricting the opponent's side attack.

Bournemouth, who had no chance, did not have a good route to pass the ball forward or laterally, so they could only pass back.

Suddenly, the Bournemouth players found that their attacking speed had actually slowed down.

It is a kind of slowness that makes them feel uncomfortable, as if they are constantly threatened by their opponents, and are forced to make the overall offense very unsatisfactory and awkward.

During this period, although the ball was under Bournemouth's control, their passes were invalid and meaningless.

Moreover, the opponent's pressing has also become more active, forming a 1v1 single defense in the frontcourt, and sometimes even being defended by the opponent.

In the 40th minute, Bournemouth could never find a chance on the outside. The forward midfielder Richie was a little annoyed and tried to force Wilson on the wing.

Pringle quickly made up the defense in the middle and double-teamed him with full-back Reese.

Wilson's delivery route was completely blocked and he could only forcefully break through the defense.

The opponent also guessed that Wilson would force a breakthrough. When Wilson's speed first picked up, Priegel blocked his position in advance to slow down his speed, and then his teammates intercepted the ball.

The two men's wonderful and tacit defense also received a round of applause from the home fans.

Fans at home can also feel that the team is gradually taking the initiative in the game.

Reese broke through the space behind Wilson with the ball, calmly observed the situation in the frontcourt without any defense, and then passed a high-quality diagonal pass to the right wing.

Here, right back Brindley has quickly stepped in.

When this 4-3-1-2 lineup counterattacks, the two full-backs must actively move forward and participate in the midfield wing or frontcourt attack.

Since Bournemouth originally focused its attack on the right, the defense on the left was naturally weak, and Brindley easily advanced with the ball.

Without dropping back into position, the two full-backs faced each other near the touchline.

1v1?

However, Brindley did not intend to pass the ball. Instead, he passed the ball across to his teammate Smallwood and turned forward.

Bournemouth's full-back immediately turned around and chased back, marking Brindley's side attack.

Smallwood easily turned around with the ball. Facing O'Kane's defense, he first took a step to the right and then transferred the ball to forward Bowery on the left side of the center.

Bournemouth's defense here is very weak. Gosling is struggling to catch up. Captain Cook can only improve the defense first to slow down Bowery's attack speed.

In this way, the Bournemouth team failed to double-team him immediately. Without interference at the front of the penalty area, Bowery looked up and observed, then calmly kicked off and passed the ball diagonally to the right into the penalty area.

When Brindley advanced, full-back Ian Hart kept chasing back and did not lose his position.

When he saw the ball moving to the center, his defense against Brindley was a little lax, and the opponent was also in an offside position.

But in this inadvertent gap, Brindley took a step back and did not become offside.

Bowery's pass was not passed to the forward closest to him, Clark Harris, but to Brindley, who was further back.

The ball passed over the head of center defender Cargill and landed accurately in front of Brindley.

Brindley, who inserted himself into the penalty area, also shot directly without stopping the ball, hitting the near corner of the goal.

Goalkeeper Kemp flew to block the near corner of the goal, but unfortunately it was a step too late.

【GOAL!!!!】

[The ball was scored, Rotherham took advantage of a counterattack opportunity, and full-back Brindley equalized the score.]

[The counterattack idea this time is quite clear, which is to use the high-speed insertion of the two full-backs, transfer the ball horizontally in a wide range, tear open the Bournemouth team's defense, and finally find a scoring opportunity.]

[If Bournemouth uses short passes on the ground to find opportunities, then Rotherham uses long passes in the air to find gaps.]

[Both teams played with a strong personal style. I dare say that this is the most exciting game in the FA Cup this round.]

After scoring the goal, Steve Evans pushed up his glasses proudly.

It's all under his control.

Cook encouraged his teammates that the game has just begun, it is just about equalizing the score, and they must continue to maintain the previous state.

After the kick-off in the center circle, Bournemouth's offense had just advanced to half-time and was instantly pressed by the opponent.

Exactly the same as before, Rotherham's defense no longer requires the three players in the midfield to use a wide range of runs to achieve the purpose of blocking the wings.

The attacking midfielder Pringle can always appear at the point where the opponent's midfielder makes a long pass and put a certain amount of pressure on him.

The purpose of this is to suppress Bournemouth's lateral transfer at the first opportunity, allowing the midfielder to have enough time to move defensively.

Under Pringle's active defense, midfielders can even reduce the need for large-scale movements and save energy.

Just because he is running alone, the players of the entire team can conserve their energy and do not have to "mobilize the troops" to make large-scale lateral movements to make up for the inherent width problem of the formation.

Another point is that after Pringle focuses on the ball from the midfielder, it is meaningless for Rossi to retreat and organize.

In addition, the opponent itself is mainly defensive. Even if Rossi retreats to the attacking midfielder position, he will not have the numerical advantage.

Pringle's running and contribution to the team are immeasurable.

Eddie Howe tried to let the two full-backs cover the side to strengthen the advantage of the wing. It can also form an interception on the defensive midfielder.

However, Pringle's retracement formed four parallel positions in the midfield, echoing the back line and keeping the defense intact.

Under such circumstances, Bournemouth could only pass the ball, but Rossi's header ability was average and had no effect at all.

At the end of the first half, with the score 1:1, the players from both sides returned to the lounge, leaving Eddie Howe with another difficult task.
Chapter completed!